Puvirnituq is an Inuit settlement in Nunavik on the Povungnituk River near its mouth on the Hudson Bay in northern Quebec, Canada. Its population is 1457 (2006 census of Canada).[1]
The name means "Place where there is a smell of rotten meat". This unusual name may have originated from either one of these events (occurring a long time ago):
Puvirnituq is the aviation hub of the Hudson Bay coast. Its airport handles scheduled flights to and from all other Hudson Bay coastal communities in Quebec, Montreal, and Ottawa. It is not accessible by road.
In 1921, the Hudson's Bay Company established a trading post here, known as Povungnituk and often shortened to Pov. This attracted the settlement of Inuit living in the region. In 1951, the HBC opened a general store. The closure of HBC stores in other nearby villages led to an influx of Inuit to Puvirnituq.
A Catholic mission was founded in 1956, which encouraged the residents to form the Carvers Association of Povungnituk two years later. It later became the Co-operative Association of Povungnituk and was instrumental in assisting, developing, and marketing Inuit art. Its success inspired other Inuit communities to form similar cooperatives, most of which now make up the Federation of Co-operatives of Northern Quebec.